NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biology FY 2019: Gender-specific regulation of juvenile social behavior by oxytocin

该行动为2019财年美国国家科学基金会生物学博士后研究奖学金提供资金，扩大生物学中代表性不足群体的参与。该奖学金支持研究员的一项研究和培训计划，该计划将增加生物学中代表性不足的群体的参与。该项目旨在了解大脑中的性别差异如何影响整个发育过程中行为的性别差异，并以大鼠为模型哺乳动物。男性和女性在潜在社会行为的大脑系统组织中表现出性别差异，这被假设为促进成年期的性别特定行为反应。然而，许多生物学上的差异在青少年身上也很明显，但这些差异对行为控制的作用还没有得到很好的理解。因此，重要的是不仅要确定青少年男性和女性社会行为背后的大脑系统是如何不同的，还要确定这些差异如何导致大脑如何调节社会行为的差异。该奖学金将促进来自神经科学背景不足的研究员在技术、专业和智力方面的发展，同时也使研究员能够在主办机构发展新的指导和培训计划。神经肽催产素调节所有哺乳动物的社会行为，其失调导致社会功能受损。在成年大鼠中，在涉及社会行为调节的关键脑区催产素受体结合密度以及这些脑区催产素释放方面存在性别差异。最近的研究发现，催产素受体结合密度的一些性别差异在幼年大鼠中已经存在，但这种差异与幼年大鼠社会行为调节的相关性尚不清楚。该研究员将通过测试催产素信号的性别差异是否会促进催产素在发育过程中调节社会行为的差异来解决这一差异。该研究员将通过以下方式来验证这一假设：1)描述性别如何影响青少年社交行为中催产素系统的激活；2)确定催产素释放和催产素受体在调节青少年社交行为中的作用。这些项目将使研究员在社会行为背后的神经回路的系统级分析方面接受技术和理论培训，并最终为研究员的独立研究生涯做好准备。此外，该研究员将通过一项新颖的倡议进一步发展指导和领导技能，以增强神经科学研究的多样性和包容性。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This action funds an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in Biology for FY 2019, Broadening Participation of Groups Under-represented in Biology. The fellowship supports a research and training plan for the Fellow that will increase the participation of groups underrepresented in biology. This project aims to understand how gender differences in the brain contribute to gender differences in behavior throughout development using rats as a model mammal. Males and females exhibit gender-specific differences in the organization of brain systems underlying social behavior, which has been hypothesized to facilitate gender-specific behavioral responses in adulthood. However, many of these biological differences are also apparent in juveniles, but the function of these differences for the control of behavior is not well understood. Therefore, it is important to determine not only how the brain systems underlying social behaviors are different in juvenile males and females, but also how these differences contribute to differences in how the brain regulates social behaviors. This fellowship will facilitate the technical, professional, and intellectual development of a fellow from a background underrepresented in the neurosciences, while also enabling the fellow to develop a new mentorship and training program at the host institution. The neuropeptide oxytocin regulates social behavior in all mammalian species studied thus far, and its dysregulation results in impairments in social functioning. In adult rats, there are gender differences in oxytocin receptor binding density in key brain areas implicated in the regulation of social behavior, as well as oxytocin release within these brain areas. Recent work has found that some of the gender differences in oxytocin receptor binding density are already present in juvenile rats, but the relevance of this difference for the regulation of social behavior in juveniles is unclear. The fellow will address this discrepancy by testing whether gender differences in oxytocin signaling promote differences in the oxytocin regulation of social behavior during development. The fellow will test this hypothesis by 1) characterizing how gender influences the activation of the oxytocin system during juvenile social behavior and 2) determining the role of oxytocin release and oxytocin receptors in regulating juvenile social behavior. These projects will allow the fellow to receive technical and theoretical training in systems level analysis of neural circuits underlying social behavior, and ultimately prepare the fellow for an independent research career. Additionally, the fellow will further develop mentoring and leadership skills through a novel initiative to enhance diversity and inclusion in neuroscience research.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.